The Global Storyteller from India

10 Things that Make a Smacking Good Horror Story

Writing a horror story? See whether you have these 10 things in place.

Writing a horror story? You have the plot, but are you hitting the right notes? Here is a quick checklist based on celebrated works of famous writers of the genre. Whether it is for a submission or for your novel, see if you are doing the right thing with your horror story. Writing tips from Neil D’Silva.

A protagonist whom everyone feels sad for, and roots for.

An antagonist capable of unleashing the most unimaginable evil.

Flaws; a truly chilling story feeds on the flaws of its people.

Stakes so high they could pierce the sky.

A place where no one wants to be.

A time when no one wants to be alone.

Hurt of the kind that is unbearable to even think about, lot less to experience.

Sounds, sights, smells, tastes, and touches that make you wish you never had the five senses.

Language that speaks minimally, but with words and phrases that keep swirling in the mind.

A climax that plays on and on in the reader’s miserable mind.

To read acclaimed horror shorts from Neil D’Silva, click on the following:

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2 thoughts on “10 Things that Make a Smacking Good Horror Story”

I see how I miss some of that stuff in my horror writing, but some is spot on. I like the Shirley Jackson/The Haunting of Hill House style, suggest, but don’t define, lead it up to the reader’s imagination. I have more of the antagonist, than I think in my book (well, novella). Someone told me I don’t write horror, I write paranormal. Could be true

Yes, that’s good. The Haunting of Hill House is a great example of atmospheric horror, with everything in it almost perfectly written. That book, like most other good horror books, plays out in the reader’s imagination. But the horror/paranormal distinction is just a nuance. Paranormal is a subgenre of horror. It does not require a very different style of writing from usual horror stories; only that the stories themselves are different.